This song was a great hit for Rose Royce...I was swept away away from the very first time that I heard it. It was filled with passion, romance, love and loss. It was brilliantly complex in its composition, its orchestration, its arrangement. The performance is haunting and touching. It brings out a certain deep longing in anyone who has ever made a bad move on a good love.
Let RadioDAZZ hypnotize you. Don't worry. I'll bring you back in less than 5 minutes and have your refreshed and ready to work. You might sigh a few times though...
Please click on the link or on the video player and enjoy this beautifully-crafted heart-bender.
Glenn Frey of The Eagles performs the ultimate, trite 1-4-5 (surfin' guitar key of E Major) "The heck with all of you" song (in the spirit of The Eagles' fabulous "Already Gone," one of every fellow's favorites when he has finally untied the knot (or the noose) with his girlfriend. These songs have something in common aside from the Frey Factor -- they are both great for driving with the windows wide open and singing at the top of your lungs down a major highway. They give you a sort of adrenaline rush before the loneliness and blues creep up on you.
For guitarophiles (I'd better watch it here), there's a truly neat inversion of an E7th chord (with the G# at the top) that adds tan and twang -- it will bring to mind The Beatles' "I Saw Her Standing There."
Enjoy "Party Town". You have my permission to sing all of the lyrics (even the part about "Kiss my a**." Dazz, your host here at RadioDAZZ (or is it DazzRADIO?), will write you a note if you need one for your teachers, parents or clergy.
Enjoy this simple, sing-along party song. Just click on the link or the video player, if it should appear [the video player is generally incompatible with the FeedburnerRSS]. It requires Hi-Def (i.e., a volume loud enough that it's highly deafening) to be fully appreciated. It's too darn short -- you may need to replay it several times... It has staying power, and it leaves you hungry for an instant replay. I like that in a single.
Image via Wikipedia
Candi Stanton was a one-hit wonder during the golden era of disco. This song is a sparkler. She deserved much more airplay, and a longer run. The song really gallops. Please put on your platform shoes, bellbottoms, drugstore perfume or cologne, turn up the volume, close your eyes and sway.
Terrific song, great riffs, rich instrumentation and that disco pulse that kept my heart in sync when it was so much wiser than my brain. Heck - You know what I mean.
She was up there with Donna Summer, Evelyn Champagne King, Freda Payne and a host (or hostess) of others. Please -- mercy, sakes, get her a slot on that list of disco Greats. This performance deserves it. Candi -- wherever you are...I'm calling out to all of you fans who never got to know your name but danced to your fine, fine music.
Please click on the hyperlink or the video player and savor the flavor of Candi.
You need inspiration. De-stress. Re-Energize. Feel the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. Lou Rawls (yes, That Guy) absolutely rocks this song in the most soulful, go-to-church arrangement and performance you've ever heard. You will want to stand up and clap your hands. If you're in the office, just move your shoulders, hips and feet -- if you can't resist moving, and being moved. "The Wind Beneath My Wings," will give you a vacation...and a new lease on life...in less than 5 minutes' time. And it won't cost you a cent. You'll want to click on this song and play it over and over and over...
You might not think that you are a Lou Rawls fan. You might not remember "You'll Never Find," or "Lady Love"... That's alright. Let him blast you into an adrenaline and endorphin rush of instant paradise. But first, a quick backgrounder.... [cue dreamy, whole-tone, harp arpeggios......]
You've heard Bette Midler sing it -- too many times. It was the theme song from the immortal chick flick "Beaches". Toward the end of her version, try as she might, she doesn't even approach the high notes - she falls so short that when I first heard her version (after having heard the Gary Morris version, which was well done, and even a bit religious), I scrunched my body down in my car seat and prayed for God to take me. When He didn't, I thought of calling the Music Police to arrest her for lame, overschmaltzed, broadway-style singing.
He rocks it with a gospel punch. He puts heart and soul into the song. The refrain is funkacious. He doesn't miss a note (key of F major), and doesn't make it into a sanctimonious "celebrity" quasi-rock cover. He rocks it like Sunday in the church choir. You'll want to stand up in your pew and clap. I played the refrain over and over again. Lou -- you had me a the D minor...
Click on the link or on the video player for a real gospel version of a song of unforgettable friendship and one person's confession of profound indebtedness to another.
There! You're a Lou Rawls Fan now. Remember... RadioDAZZ prescribed it just for you. Play it loud. Play it often. Forward this to your family, friends and colleagues - even your old gym coach (if he's still alive). Everybody will thank you. Spread the love and share the music.
This song is one of a kind. Truly. "Kung Fu Fighting" is truly infantile, trite and misinformed (as to the ways of the martial arts)...having said that, the song is absolutely cute, unassuming and entertaining. The opening riff (with its pentatonic air) is fabulously distinctive -- if you hum it to most anyone, that person (the anyone) will exclaim, "Kung Fu Fighting? Isn't that the song about Kung Fu Fighting?"
Don't think about it. Just enjoy it. Silly sound effects and all. It's a "old school" type of Top 40 hit.
As a youngster (growing up in the Carpathian Alps with my grandpapa, a respected cheesemaker and impaler, during the French and Indian War), one of my favorite science fiction movies (starring the late Steve McQueen) was "The Blob." It was campy, trite, and budget-tight, but it was thoroughly entertaining, especially if you were a teenager (which I wasn't) in your freshly-waxed Studebaker (or Biscayne) at the drive-in theater.
The theme song from the movie is actually a wonderful Mambo. Very, very catchy. Please click on the link and enjoy this bit of musical nostalgia. You'll find it difficult not to dance around with a foolish grin on your face, and the song will be running through your mind for days. I promise [but being a prudent businessperson, I will not put that into writing. Ha!].
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This article is an amended re-post. Previously, it was a combination of friendly self-promotion, news and some compost; that last ingredient is what is spontaneously generated when you try to do things in too much haste. This time, I have included hyperlinks embedded in each of the blue blog buttons (try saying that three times fast), which are hosted courtesy of CoolText, a wonderful graphics and design tool.
If you think that you've seen this post before, you actually haven't -- as they used to say on every package in every supermarket when I was a mere lad, this article is "NEW and IMPROVED!"
I've even added a picture to this article. The subject matter of the picture is irrelevant, but that doesn't make it any less entertaining - and entertainment, like education, is always welcome.
Please visit some of my most popular blogs, and feel free to comment on articles, to link to any of them (and I will reciprocate your backlink with an inbound link to your site), or to re-publish any of the content. You can re-publish without permission, provided that you republish any articles in their entirety, with all images and hyperlinks left fully intact and 'live,' and with attribution given to the author (that's me).
At the end of this post, you'll find a listing of links to related articles that involve various aspects of these search terms, categories, tags, keywords, labels and topics for your reference and use.
1973 was the year that Al Wilson came crashing into my life with his hit single "Show And Tell." Intensely soulful, with full orchestration and elegant orchestration (great bass line, tangy clavinet-like electric keyboard, choral backing, some terrific top-of-the-voice-register modulation built in to the song itself -- rare and very powerful). A perfect soul single, exemplary of the funky but romantic side of the love ballads of the 1070's.
You'll enjoy this perfect single. It is a flawless Top 40 gem.
Please click on the hyperlink or the video player (if it actually shows itself) below and sit back for this one. Slow, deep breaths. Let the music take you -- just for a little while. You'll come back a few minutes later feeling as if you'd taken a vacation with a soul vaccination.
Freda Payne sings "Band of Gold" on Soul Train. This song was her breakthrough hit (with a nice counterpoint riff on electric sitar, and a bass line with a slightly middle eastern feel), and her performance, while lip-synched, was just incredible. This was my younger sister's favorite song, and one of the first 45 rpm vinyl singles she bought. She played this record to death -- I pretended to be tired of it, but I secretly loved it.
These are indeed difficult times. Financially. Emotionally. Spiritually. RadioDAZZ has a temporary elixir -- at least a shot of symptomatic relief to offer. No pills. No needles. No transdermal patch. Nothing to inhale. This soul medication is administered aurally. Your ears are the shortest access route for the magic of music to get to your brain. I am always thinking of efficiency.
The song, in D minor (with a crazy back-and-forth frenzied chord riff between d minor and G, with a sustained D in the bass), is a study (doctoral level!) in cool. The late Marvin's style is completely contemplative, soulful and subtle. It's as if he is quietly and introspectively pleading his case. You might want to listen to it more than once. It's only a matter of time before it grabs you; and after it has, it will give you gooseflesh. It is serious stuff, but it will pull you out of your world, and into a place that will make you holler (this expression pre-dates 'holla') to come back to earth. Then, oddly enough, you'll find yourself hearing it over and over in your mind, and your walk (even if you are melanin-impaired, as I am), is going to turn out to be a strut.
Take some time for yourself and savor the flavor of The Originals' version of this soul classic (1970) -- "The Bells." The harmony is delicious and rich. You'll absolutely hear the bells. There will be moments when you'll even think about another song - Wildflower - ("let her cry/ For she's a lady/ Let her dream...). This is pure soul.
Then, listen to a version done by the writer, Laura Nyro. She is outstanding. She was so prolific. She wrote for Barbara Streisand, The 5th Dimension, Patti LaBelle, Three Dog Night, Asford and Simpson, and countless other artists. Every song was a hit. When Laura sings and plays her piano (that's right...HER piano), she fills an auditorium with so much pure, unbridled passion and delicacy that it becomes a church, or a holy shrine. When I listen to her, sometimes (this is a secret) I catch myself tearing up over some woman whom I've never met. The term "musician" is, by itself, inadequate -- "Magician" is more like it.
Listen here. Listen to two versions of "The Bells". One after the next. The first one is fabulous -- but I'll confess (amen) that it is really just a teaser, an appetizer for the second.
And Now: Laura and Patti Labelle's Version.
-- There might actually be angels after all, kids. Please don't watch the rather explicit and frightfully tasteless video though. Close your eyes and just listen.
Word Salad -- Tags, Labels, Search Terms, Keywords, Codewords: Laura Nyro, Three Dog Night, YouTube, Patti LaBelle, RSS, soul, funk, Love Boat, Love American Style, Merokee Drive, September's, Foncy's Wine And Cheese.
DAZZ is the nickname for this chap who once fancied becoming a professional musician. He started playing guitar in the fifth grade, and was, thereafter consumed with it.
He played in a string of garage bands, some nightclubs, some bungalow colonies, at Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, Christenings, Weddings, Gasoline Station Openings, School Proms, Recording Studio Sessions. He wrote songs. He dreamed of being a singer-songwriter with a group of his own. Then, things went terribly wrong, and he wound up getting an MBA instead.
He resumed an unenchanted mortal life as just "Douglas Castle," "Doug," "Sensei Douglas," "Associate Professor Castle," "Double D," "Uncle Doug," "Dad" ... but DAZZ (the funky white boy) somehow was lost in the shuffle. I did everything not to be that DAZZ. After a time, he was like a character in a movie that I had seen.
I recently re-discovered him, while picking up a guitar. He took me over for a while, with incredible force, like an awakened poltergeist. I think he was angry at having been stuffed into a tiny, dark corner for all of those years. He played so much that my fingers were bloody. I tried to cram him back inside, but he refused to be denied. We now share my body. We are still negotiating a peace between us.
I dedicate this utterly self-indulgent post to my father, the late Marc W. Castle.
We had a strained relationship -- he was ill, and in a great deal of pain, but I didn't understand...not then.
My Mother wanted me to be a stockbroker, or a college professor (I did this for a while), or a physician.
But Dad, like a single-minded, obsessive child, actually wanted me to become a musician. He would boast of my musical talent (such as it was) to anybody who would listen. It's too late to tell him that he was always right about who I really was. I've spent my life trying to run away from who I truly am, but I still come back to DAZZ, my father's real son.
Dad - Please forgive me. I was too busy trying to impress other people to realize that I was ignoring my greatest fan. I'd give anything to have you back -- maybe you could give me a second chance. Happy Father's Day.
I dedicate this song to you, Dad. It's called "My Back Pages," and it was done by the Byrds in the 1960s. The line "I was so much older then/ I'm younger than that now," sums it up.
Douglas Castle, also referred to as “Castle Douglas” or “Castle Dangerous,” the regal remains of which legendary and celebrated edifice still stand today in Douglas, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, is not in any way related (regrettably) to Douglas E Castle, the common-born chairman of TNNWC Group, LLC, who currently resides in the United States of America.
The latter-mentioned Human Being does not even bear a remote genealogical relationship to any of the members of Clan Douglas. In fact, he has never even had an opportunity to visit his namesake landmark; further, the closest that he has come to nobility is by the place of his birth; the Borough of Queens, in the City of New York. He collects no rents, receives no royalties and levies no taxes on any Gaelic (or other) persons or establishments in the Realm of Douglas.
He has neither a serf nor a servant in his retinue – besides, serfs and servants are terribly expensive, and in this tempestuous and challenging economy they would be a conspicuous extravagance. The neighbors and stakeholders would ask too many questions.
About The Other Douglas Castle:
The information which follows is provided courtesy of Wikipedia™, one of the Human Douglas Castle’s favorite resources:
“Douglas Castle. These ruins are also known as Castle Dangerous (after being immortalised in Sir Walter Scott's Novel of the same name) and lie in beautiful parkland east of Douglas. Most of the ruins were demolished because of Subsidence in the 1940's but this castle was once home to the Black Douglas family and has a long and bloody history.”
Douglas Castle was a stronghold of the Douglas family from medieval times to the 19th century. The first castle, erected in the 13th century, was destroyed and replaced several times until the 18th century when a large mansion house was built in its place. This too was demolished in 1938, and today only a single corner tower of the 17th-century castle remains. The castle was the former family seat of the Prime Minister, Alec Douglas-Home. The castle was located around 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) north-east of the village of Douglas, South Lanarkshire, in south-west Scotland. The remains are protected as a category C listed building.[1]
The Douglas family built the first Douglas Castle, which was constructed of either wood or stone, sometime before 1288.[2] In 1307, during the Wars of Scottish Independence the castle was captured and garrisoned by the English under Lord Clifford. Sir James Douglas, companion of Robert the Bruce successfully recaptured his family seat by storming the castle on Palm Sunday, while the garrison was at chapel. He had the garrison killed and thrown into a cellar, before the structure was burned. The event has become known as "Douglas' larder".
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For information about the far less-glamorous Douglas E Castle, simply scroll down to the footer of this article posting.
There. I guess that should serve to clear things up a bit.
Faithfully,
Douglas Castle
[Composed of flesh, bone and blood, and not of brick, stone or other construction materials. Considered by some to represent a sentient life form, this Douglas Castle is made of 100% recycled genetic materials, and is fully biodegradable – at a faster pace than he would like]
Illustrations Follow:
Castle Douglas - The Edifice In Scotland
Douglas Castle - The Human Being (Not In Scotland)
About This Author: Further information regarding this author’s professional experience, expertise and service offerings can be found at ABOUT DOUGLAS E CASTLE
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What more can be said? In the 1960s Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs (LatinAmerican fellows dressed up as garish sheiks) came out with this incredibly ridiculous but frighteningly unforgettable song.
I would suggest that you crank up your speakers (especially if you are in a large office, filled with disgruntled employees who are living for the weekend and waiting to find out who will be fired next because of budget cuts (for productive employees, who actually "work") to provide greater heaps of compensation to the highest-ranking corporate officers and their cigar-chompin' board members.
I can't guarantee it, but they'll probably start to dance and laugh hysterically as the pressure valve bursts open.
Just click on the hyperlink, or click on the You Tube Video Player (if it actually appears in your browser). If your boss or any other spoilsport should demand an explanation for the sudden outbreak of joyous insanity, tell him (or her) to ring up Douglas E Castle. I'll take care of it for you with my polished diplomatic skills.
RadioDAZZ is Irreverent. RadioDAZZ does not use Spellcheck. RadioDAZZ must be played!
Quote from this song: "Let's not be L 7/ Come and learn to dance." L7 means, like "square," man. Dig?
For complete tactical and strategic business planning, marketing, media, lead-generation, technological and capital resources, scalable solutions and tools to support every entrepreneurial start-up, young enterprise, small- to medium-sized business and emerging high-growth company, talk to The National Networker Companies™/ TNNWC Group, LLC.
We are a collaborative entrepreneurial, creative organization offering you hands-on, personalized assistance in every aspect of achieving your monetization, profitability and financial sustainability objectives, domestically and globally.
We don’t just coach you or offer you pre-packaged, push-button solutions – we listen to you, analyze your exact needs, and work within your budget to: 1) create your tool kit and 2) work as your partner to implement your plan by supporting you in the most efficient and productive use of every tool.
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Just go to our home page, and click on the “JOIN US” button.
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FEATURE YOURSELF ON RADIO DAZZ.
POTENTIAL EXPOSURE TO AN AUDIENCE OF MILLIONS!If you have a downloadable audio or audio/video (YouTube, for example) recording either one of your performances or of an album or demonstration recording (a sampler) that you'd like to get exposed to millions of viewers or listeners, Radio DAZZ wants to help put your music out there. We have loads of established platforms, venues and media distribution channels. Simply click on the button (either above or below), fill-in the pop-up form, submit it, and we’ll do the rest. If you’re good, everyone should know it. And everyone will. Everywhere.
